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tldr fatties fatting all over the place.
Big deal: You can be fat and fit
By Marilyn Wann , Special to CNN
updated 1:58 PM EST, Thu January 3, 2013
CNN.com
Editor's note: Marilyn Wann is author of "FAT!SO?" and a weight diversity speaker internationally. She is the creator of Yay! Scales, which give compliments instead of numbers.
(CNN) -- After a careful review of all relevant research worldwide, the U.S. government's leading analyst of weight data just confirmed what I've long known: Being fat might not be a death sentence.
That this study reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association seems at all shocking is a measure of the intensity and pervasiveness of weight prejudice in our society and in our sciences.
Another recent study found people who were "metabolically healthy" and overweight or obese had no higher death risk than metabolically healthy "normal" weight people.
I take an interest in the topic because I'm fat and because I don't have a death wish. I'm also interested because, like so many fat people, I've encountered weight discrimination when I seek routine medical care. I was 26 years old when I was denied the right to purchase health insurance. I had no significant history of illness or injury. I was just fat. That day, I became a fat rights activist.
Being overweight linked to lower risk of mortality
In the intervening years, I've heard from so many people who fear for their lives when they encounter weight discrimination in our health care system.
As a fat activist, I help as much as I can, but I'm no federal agency.
One woman called in the middle of the night, hoping I knew of an MRI she could use for an important test. The machine at her local hospital, which she'd used before, was being guarded by a technician who strictly enforced the weight limits. The tray that slides in and out of the machine could break. Instead, she was denied potentially life-saving information in a crisis. How many of the deaths blamed on weight are actually caused by medical equipment -- everything from blood pressure cuffs to surgical instruments -- that fails to accommodate fat people when we need it most?
Then there are the fat people who did everything their doctors recommended to lose weight ... and died from dangerous diet drugs, from starvation diets, from mutilating weight-loss surgeries. I also hear from many people who live with the devastating physical and psychological consequences of such weight-loss attempts.
Some of these stories are referred to as anecdata, meaning they don't count unless they're counted in research -- although there are plenty of studies to support these outcomes. Even so, I believe it still makes a difference when we tell our stories of weight discrimination and its damaging impact on our health.
Living: 'Fatshion' bloggers find beauty in all sizes
People are telling their stories of weight bias in medical care on websites like First, Do No Harm, This Is Thin Privilege and Obesity Surgery Gone Wrong. The National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance has been speaking out on behalf of fat people's civil rights since its founding in 1969.
Health professionals of good conscience are joining this effort in increasing numbers. They've developed an approach called Health At Every Size that is proving to be better for people's health than weight-loss attempts. The Health At Every Size professional organization, Association of Size Diversity and Health, this week launched the project Resolved, a response to New Year's weight-loss resolutions. It invites people to share stories about weight discrimination in health care and opinions about what needs to change.
Weight bias has been do ented among doctors, nurses, fitness instructors and other professionals on whom a fat person might need to rely for help. Last year, researchers who themselves are part of an anti-"obesity" ins ution (Yale's Rudd Ins ute) surveyed medical professionals who specialize in caring for fat people and found that they had high levels of weight bias, viewing us as "lazy, stupid, and worthless."
These biases don't improve medical care. Two pioneers of the Health At Every Size approach, psychologist Deb Burgard and health promotion expert Lily O'Hara, analyze existing data to point out that using BMI as a proxy for metabolic health mislabels 51% of healthy people as unhealthy. Meanwhile, 23.5% of the thin people with risky indicators will not be screened or treated early because they "look" healthy.
In the medical literature, every time fat people prove to be healthier or to live longer than thin people, researchers call that result an "obesity paradox." I'd call their refusal to view fat people positively a form of prejudice.
Here's a finding from the recent research that didn't make the headlines: For people over 65, being fat wasn't associated with increased risk, not even for the fattest old people. When do most people die, in our increasingly long-lived society? Over age 65, perhaps?
Living: Are we really ready to take a look at 'real women'?
I also learned this week that a highly accurate way to predict a person's risk of dying is to see how easily they can get up from the floor. I'm trying to imagine how different our health care system would be if, instead of focusing on weight and weight loss, caregivers did the sitting-rising test instead.
How much healthier would we be? How much more would we actually enjoy healthy living, free from weight judgment? How much time and money would we save? How much discrimination and human tragedy could we avoid? I'm guessing it'd be tons.
© 2013 Cable News Network. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
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tldr fatties fatting all over the place.
I have a cousin who has struggled with her weight. Nicest person you'd ever want to meet. Does all she can to battle her problem.
It takes a true asshole to play what you just did.
Looks like somebody needs to check their privilege.
inb4 someone tries to in my thread
edit........too late
Obviously not.
The way America has become accepting of obesity is sickening. The big reason this country has out-of-control healthcare costs is because of how much healthcare obese people require. They respond with anecdotal bull about a few people who are fat while being healthy and not on any medication. It's totally irresponsible to portray obesity at something that doesn't compromise your health.
I'm real concerned about the amount of fat acceptance crap that has come out cause it's new years. I need those people to sign up at gyms and then stop going to keep my costs down
Why talk about things you know ...0...about? She has lost over 50 pounds, now it's all about keeping it off, there's the struggle.
Sampling obese people over age 65 is as intellectually dishonest as it gets. A significant portion of obese people don't make it to 65, so by only sampling ones that do preselects a group of people where obesity has an abnormally low effect on their health.
This article also fails to mention how costly these "health at every size" programs are. Yeah, you can load fat people up with blood pressure meds and the works, just don't be surprised when normal people get upset "health at every size" is jacking their insurance costs up.
So she got her weight down through diet and exercise, right?
iirc trainwreck has a similar weight loss story, and his criticism/laughter it not at all aimed at people like your cousin.
inspirational stuff.
It's not really a struggle.
In order to lose weight, you need to burn MORE calories than you consume.
In order to maintain weight, you need to burn AS MANY calories as you consume.
If one is capable of losing 50 pounds, one is capable of maintaining the new weight. The problem is people going on unsustainable diets so they have no clue what to do once they're off the diet.
http://edition.cnn.com/2013/01/02/he...ity/index.html
son the causation is
-fat people are sick so they have to go to the doctor more so they are more likely to find something chronic
-when an old person gets sick and loses weight because of it it helps to have extra weight to lose
-being thin doesn't make you sick and die but being sick can make you thin and die
Well aware of all that. Been into physical fitness since high school. I had a lot to do with my cousins success at losing the weight. I got her out and active and off the junk she was consuming, She does struggle staying focused/routine/disciplined however. She does the best she can but lacks self motivation. Yep, weak.
She lost 50 pounds and from what you're saying is keeping it off. You're making this thread about her to victimize her when the thread is targeted at fat people who don't care and think it's healthy to be fat.
OMG, this is the stupidest thing I have ever seen. I'm tempted to buy one though so I can make a website converting the compliments to tonnage for fat es worldwide.She is the creator of Yay! Scales, which give compliments instead of numbers.
Oh my god, this article keeps getting better and better. The Yay! Scales had me laughing so hard I had to stop, and now hearing this dumb about the healthcare problems caused by 5'4" 285 pounders?
I am a firm beliver in not saying things in hiding that you wouldn't say in person. Nothing sucks harder than people talking they'd never say in person. Internet pricks really do suck.
Would anyone talk....fatty fatty....to a fat person?
If that person was one of those people with a bad fat ude (i.e. thinks I should suffer because they can't fit in their airline seat) I'd say it to their face.
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